


Clocks Move Forward (But We Don't Get Older)

by WaitingForMyHogwartsLetter



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV 2020), Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Alex Mercer Needs a Hug (Julie and The Phantoms), Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Bobby and Rose dream team we love to see it, Caleb is still a bitch, Established Bobby/Reggie, Flarrie Music Rivals To Lovers, Inspired by Find Me In Paris, Lesbian Flynn (Julie and The Phantoms), Loosely Follows Find Me In Paris S1, Multi, Slow Updates, Sporadic Updates Because Time Does Not Exist, Time Travel, except now he can time travel too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-18 02:20:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29110692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WaitingForMyHogwartsLetter/pseuds/WaitingForMyHogwartsLetter
Summary: When ¾ of Sunset Curve, a 90s rock band, realise that their bandmate Bobby made a bad deal to get them a gig at the Orpheum, they realise they’re wanted by a man called Caleb Covington. In their attempt to escape they run through a door and end up in 2020.If they hope to keep their secret and hide from the men Caleb sent after them--all while trying to find a way to get home--then they have to learn to adapt to the present day.All with help from one Julie Molina, of course.Inspired by 'Find Me In Paris'.
Relationships: Alex Mercer/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Bobby | Trevor Wilson/Reggie Peters, Flynn/Carrie Wilson, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 26





	1. People Don't Just Disappear

**Author's Note:**

> So I was thinking last night and I thought hey, what if that time travelling dance show was about music instead? What if the time gap was between 1995 and 2020, and was about JATP? 
> 
> Anyways, that's how this formed. 
> 
> Also Bobby and Reggie are dating because I've read a load of fics where they're dating and they're adorable so yeah this is happening.

> **_— 1995 —_ **

“We’re going to be legends,” Luke nudged Alex and grinned, tapping Bobby on the arm. “Still can’t believe you got us this gig.” 

“What, like I wasn’t going to come through?” Bobby joked. “Oh, and I got this for good luck—” he draped the timepiece around Reggies neck. “The girl watching the soundcheck gave it to me. She seemed pretty happy to be rid of it, actually. Weird.” 

Reggie poked a finger at the chain to hold the timepiece up to the light. “Woah, dude, this is rad! Thanks.” He linked his fingers with his boyfriend’s and wrapped his arm around him, whispering, “I love it.” He lowered his voice, bringing his lips close to Bobby's ear as he grinned. “I've got a surprise for you, by the way."

Alex whistled, “I can’t believe how many bands have played the Orpheum and become _huge.”_

“This is it, boys,” Luke tapped his hotdog against Alex’s like they were toasting at a fancy event. “After tonight _everything_ changes.” 

Bobby looked up, about to agree with Luke when he spotted a figure in a top hat at the side of the stage. “Shit.” He let go of Reggie’s hand. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.” 

“Bobby?” Reggie called after him, but he had already ducked around a corner. 

Alex glanced at the others. “Anyone else finding that really weird? Or just me.” 

“No, something’s definitely up,” Luke agreed. “We should follow him.” 

“Isn’t that a violation of privacy? He told us to wait here,” Reggie hesitated. 

Luke turned to him, and striking the other two by surprise, he dropped the rest of his hot dog into a nearby trash can. “But what if he’s in trouble?” 

Bobby eyed Caleb cautiously. “We made a deal. You said you’d get my band the gig, and in return, I’d owe you a favour.” 

“Of course,” the man inspected his fingernails, “We signed a contract. But I didn’t specify _when_ I’d be collecting that favour. I’ve decided I’d like to cash it in now.” 

“You can’t do that,” Bobby spluttered. “We go on in two hours. This is the biggest gig of our careers so far, I won’t put that in jeopardy.” 

“You’ll keep to your word, Mr Wilson, unless…” Caleb trailed off, a sinister smile on his face. 

Bobby hesitated, “Unless _what?”_

“Unless you want something to happen to any of your bandmates…” he finished, watching Bobby’s reaction. 

He stilled, falling silent and staring at Caleb in horror. “Is that… is that a threat?” 

“I don’t know about you guys, but I don’t like the idea of being threatened,” Luke announced, appearing behind Bobby as he rounded the corner, the rest of Sunset Curve having heard at least the last few sentences in the exchange. “What do you think, Alex?” 

“I don’t like that either,” the blonde replied, eyeing Caleb suspiciously. “I’d appreciate it if you left us alone… Sir.” 

“Really dude? That undercuts the whole vibe,” Luke hissed to him. 

Alex glared at him. “I can’t help it!” 

Bobby took a step back and Reggie’s hand rested on his arm reassuringly. “There a problem?” 

Caleb clicked his fingers and two men in suits appeared behind him. “I don’t like it when I can’t collect on favours. Your father knows that more than anyone else. I’m going to give you one last chance to come with me, or Dante and Fuego here are going to make the decision a little _easier_ for you. How does that sound?” 

Bobby took a step back, raising his hands in surrender. “Alright, alright, we’ll—” He spun around, pushing the others moving. “RUN!” 

They shot off away from Covington, running through the main entrance area of the Orpheum and past a load of fans who screeched as soon as they saw them pass the window. “Move!” Luke tugged Alex along by his fanny pack while Bobby and Reggie ran with their hands locked together, desperate to get away from Caleb. 

“In the nicest way possible, Bobby what the _fuck_ did you do!” Alex yelled, glancing behind him and then wishing that he hadn’t as soon as he saw Caleb, Dante and Fuego at the end of the corridor. 

“I’m sorry, guys, I didn’t expect it to go like this, I swear!” Bobby shouted back, pulling them Reggie down into an alcove and letting Luke and Alex cram in too as they waited for their pursuers to pass. The moment they were gone, Luke hauled Bobby up by his suspenders and locked eyes with him. 

“What did you do?” 

He sighed, “I’d really like to explain how everything went to shit, but I think right now we should probably get out of here?” 

“To hell with getting out of here! We have a gig!” Luke protested. 

Alex put a hand on his shoulder, “Then we’ll find somewhere to lay low until we can perform. If we’re lucky then they’ll think we left and we can think of a plan after the set.” 

“I’m with Alex,” Reggie agreed. “Let’s go.” 

They half squeezed, half fell out of the cupboard they’d squashed themselves into before setting off again, darting down the corridors and trying to find the dressing room they’d been assigned for the show. Shouts behind them alerted the group that Caleb and his men were still in pursuit so Alex ducked around the nearest corridor. 

Dante was getting closest so Bobby let go of Reggie’s hand to swing his fist at the man’s face. They stopped for a second, the footsteps of Caleb and Fuego getting closer as Dante staggered to the side, clutching his head. “I’m sorry,” Bobby pulled Reggie in for a kiss. “I got us into this mess, I’m going to get us out of it. I’m right behind you, I promise.” 

“Bobby—” 

“Go!” He yelled, shoving Reggie into Luke to get them moving again.

They started running, Reggie throwing glances over his shoulder as Bobby followed them at a distance, using the environment to his advantage and making it as hard as possible for them to be followed by spilling boxes of equipment and supplies across the floor. 

“In here!” Luke tugged on Reggie’s arm and pulled him through the door, Alex rushing in as it fell shut behind them. 

Bobby finally caught up to them and banged on the door. “Guys! Guys, what the hell? Reggie? Alex? Luke! Open the door!” He finally wrenched the doors open and stared in horror at what was behind them. _A brick wall._ No, that was _impossible._ He’d seen them go through the door, he’d _seen_ it. 

This wasn’t right. This couldn’t be happening. 

People don’t just _disappear._

* * *

> _**— 2020 —** _

Julie linked arms with Flynn and Willie when it was their turn to walk through the doors into the Orpheum. It was just a school trip, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t weird. “I can’t believe my mom used to work at this place,” she whispered in wonder when their class reached the area next to the stage. “It’s amazing.” 

“Can you imagine performing on that stage? Unreal.” Flynn whistled. “Can’t believe LF has a partnership with this place.” 

Willie nodded, “This place… wow.” 

“At the end of the year, that could be one of us on that stage,” she replied, awestruck. 

But the moment was shattered by Carrie. “Yeah, it’s going to be me and the rest of Dirty Candi,” she pointed out. “Sorry to burst your bubble, but I just don’t think you’re made for a stage like this.” 

“Just you wait, Carrie,” Flynn snapped.

Carrie laughed, rolling her eyes, “Wow.” 

Flynn and Willie glared daggers at Carrie’s back as she walked away, but Julie was distracted by Nick, who was _also_ staring at the stage with the same intensity she had been only moments earlier. “Nick? Still? Come on, you know they’re going to get married and have a _bunch_ of unholy babies.” 

Julie watched him wistfully. “Nick’s a sweetheart!” 

“Yeah, you’d actually have to talk to him to know that,” Flynn pointed out, laughing as Julie swatted her in the arm. “Anyway, only one of them has to be a demon to make a demon baby.” She waited until Carrie was slightly further away before yelling, “DEMON!” And ducking behind the nearest table. 

Julie snorted as she was dragged down out of sight next to her, pulling Willie down too. “Flynn!” 

When Carrie had turned away again, the three of them stood up and Willie rolled his eyes at Flynn, who seemed unbothered by that. “You want to explore?” Flynn nudged them.

“Hell yeah,” Willie grinned. 

Julie hesitated, “We’re supposed to stay with the group.” 

Flynn lowered her voice, “Don’t you want to find out more about your mom? She _worked_ here, Jules! What if there’s like… an old staff photo somewhere?” 

Okay, that had piqued her interest. “Fine,” she hissed. “But we better get back before Mrs Harrison notices.” 

They ducked out of the way until the class group passed and doubled back towards the backstage area and the dressing rooms. Flynn led the way down a narrow corridor that opened out just before it reached the backstage area, with a door on one side. Julie hesitated, looking at the photos along the wall. There was one in particular that caught her attention. Four boys, one of the tech guys, and… _her mom._ Taken in 1995. She looked away for a second, a brief second, to check that her friends were still in sight, but when she looked back the photo was only her mom, the tech guy, and one of the boys from before, who was staring nervously off-camera. It was almost as if she’d imagined it. But that was impossible, right? People don’t just disappear from photos. People don’t just disappear, period. 

Maybe she _was_ losing it. 

Honestly, that wouldn’t be a surprise. It was no secret that ever since her mom died, everyone had been _waiting_ for her to snap. Everyone, apart from Flynn and Willie, had been walking on eggshells around her, scared to say something wrong and send her into a downward spiral. Well, the circumstances weren’t ideal, but she wasn’t some fragile piece of _china,_ for god’s sake. 

Julie was torn from her thoughts by the shouts from behind her, and she whirled around in time to see three boys— three _familiar-looking_ boys— fall through a side door, one of whom completely landed on top of Willie. 

“How did we get back here?” Luke looked around, confused. “I thought that door led outside.” 

“Where’s Bobby?” Reggie turned back, pulling on the doors that had slammed shut after they fell through. 

Alex stared at Willie, who he’d crashed into during his entrance. “I’m so sorry, I—” 

“Bro, don’t even worry about it,” Willie sighed, noticing the panic in Alex’s features. “I’ve taken worse hits while on my board.” He rolled over and held out a hand, helping Alex to his feet. “You guys in a hurry or something? Do you work here?” 

Julie stayed silent, watching the boys.

_“Where’s Bobby?”_ Reggie repeated, and Luke spun around to help him get the door open. 

Flynn rolled her eyes, “Move over. With those arms, you’d think one of you would have a little bit of strength.” She pulled the door open and stared at the space behind it. “Uhh, guys?” 

Julie walked over slowly, frowning when she heard the uncertainty in Flynn’s voice. 

The door behind them led nowhere. 

They’d somehow managed to fall through a brick wall. 

_People don’t just appear out of nowhere…_

_Do they?_

* * *

> **_— 1995 —_ **

Bobby hid as soon as he heard Covington coming. This wasn’t possible, this _couldn’t_ be possible. This— 

He held his breath as the man got closer, Fuego by his side and Dante regaining consciousness further down the corridor. Caleb ran a tentative finger along the brick wall. “We missed them. Unfortunate, really. Well, not a problem. We’ll figure out when they ended up, and follow them as soon as the portal reopens. They wouldn’t have been that much use working for us anyway— the timepiece is more important. Grab your brother, we’re leaving.” 

Bobby put his head in his hands and tried to make sense of what he’d heard, refusing to let himself give in to the panic slowly rising before he’d figured out what was happening. His hands clenched and unclenched in his hair as he squeezed his eyes shut. _This wasn’t happening. This wasn’t happening._ What the hell did Covington mean by ‘when they ended up’? And what the hell did he want from the timepiece Rose had given him?

It was almost as if thinking of her had summoned the girl, as he heard her before he saw her. Rose picked her way through the mess that was the back hallway, half-bothering to pick up some of the boxes, half-kicking them aside instead. Her eyes landed on the open doors leading to nothing and she swore, breaking into a jog and miraculously avoiding falling over any and all of the items Bobby had spread out to make it harder to be pursued. “No no no no no…” She kicked the brick wall. “This was _not_ supposed to happen.” 

“You’re telling me,” Bobby snapped, getting to his feet and dragging the back of his hand across his forehead. “If you’re involved with this, you’ve got some explaining to do.” 

“I know,” she sighed, “I fucked up. But we’re going to fix this.” 

“To be able to fix this, I need to know what the hell is going on,” he warned. “My family disappeared, and I’d like to know where the hell they’ve gone.” 

Rose looked around, confirming that they were alone before she replied, “It’s not where. It’s _when._ Come with me, and act natural.” 

“How the hell can I act natural when— shit, I don’t even _know_ how to describe this,” he trailed off, following her through the Orpheum. “My band— we’re supposed to perform soon…” 

“This will all make sense, I swear. Just—” She got cut off by one of her coworkers, calling her over from in front of the stage. 

“Hey, Rose! We’re taking a photo, you in?” 

“‘Course,” she replied, plastering on a grin and turning around to drag Bobby with her. “Act natural,” she repeated, this time under her breath as she threw an arm around his shoulders and posed for the photo. 

At the last second, before the camera flashed, something— no, _someone—_ caught Bobby’s eye. Caleb was watching him, an eyebrow raised as if to say ‘oh, you’re still here?’. When he locked eyes with him, the man in the suit only smirked and tipped his hat, before disappearing around the corner. Bobby shook off the unsettled feeling and looked back at Rose, lifting up her arm and removing it from around his shoulders. “Where are we going?” 

“My place, I’ll explain there.” 

“Before we go…” He sighed, “I need to make a quick stop. Just in case they come back.” 

Rose watched him sympathetically, “Bobby, I don’t think they’re coming back unless we bring them back.”

Somehow, he’d expected that. “Yeah, just in case though. I’ll regret it if I don’t. Have you got a piece of paper?” 

She followed him outside and around the back of the building, Bobby gestured for her to wait for a second as he moved the old couch that leant against the wall opposite so that he could climb up to the ledge and sit down. The little shelf was only big enough for two, but it was next to a small window that just about allowed the person sitting there to see into the Orpheum, with an almost uninterrupted view of the stage. Reggie had found it almost a year ago, and they’d been coming there ever since. One of the bricks was loose, and it was the perfect place to store messages or little gifts. Bobby pried the brick out of its place and sat it on the ledge next to him as he pulled the piece of paper out of his pocket and scribbled on it. 

I’m sorry. I’m going to do whatever I can to fix this. Everything’s going to be okay, I promise - B.

But before he could slide it into place— even for his own peace of mind, really, there was no guarantee Reggie would see it— he spotted a few folded up pieces of paper already there. Bobby scooped them out into his lap and spared a quick glance at Rose, who was leaning against the wall and fiddling with the frayed hem of her jacket. He slid his note inside and replaced the brick before unfolding the papers that were undoubtedly from Reggie. 

It was the finished version of _Home Is Where My Horse Is._ Of course. He’d been secretive about the country song he was writing for Bobby for _so damn long,_ and if he were there after the performance Reggie would probably be singing it to him and it took everything in Bobby to focus on the task of bringing him _home_ instead of thinking about what kind of danger he was in and fighting back tears. He folded the papers back up and tucked them into his pocket for safekeeping, barely skimming the lyrics because he knew that if he read it properly any further than the second line— 

_Sometimes it’s a someone and not a place_

—then he’d lose it, and never be able to concentrate on what Rose was about to explain. 

Bobby made sure the brick was in place and jumped down onto the couch, before moving it out of the way again so that no one would get up to their spot. It wasn’t even like anyone would try, it was just habit at this point. “Right, do I have to wait until we get to your place to hear what’s going on?” 

“Lucky I brought my car today— there’s no way we could talk about this shit on the bus,” she unlocked it and climbed inside. “Get in.” 

“You better not kidnap and murder me,” he replied bitterly. “It’s been a hellish enough day as it is.” 

Rose watched him warily for a second, “You know the show’s going to be cancelled, right? They’re not going to be back in time. Even if they were, the timeline would still have changed.” 

“I got that gig because I called in a favour from Caleb fucking Covington. At least now I don’t have to owe him anyway,” he announced firmly. “Now start talking.” 

“I’m a time traveller,” she revealed. “My whole family is. My sister has one timepiece, I have the other. Our family has been doing it for centuries, but after a run-in with the Bureau… we made the collective decision to lay low for a bit. Plus, the two timepieces are too powerful to be that close to one another, so we needed to find a way to keep them apart safely. I thought I saw Covington watching your soundcheck and he’s been after them for years, so I gave it away before he could see that I had it. I wasn’t expecting your friends to go through the portal with it, hell I didn’t even realise it was a portal day— my bad, really.” 

Bobby stared, trying to take it all in. “Time travellers? You’ve got to be shitting me. Also ‘ _my bad’?_ ‘My bad’ is for when you accidentally borrow your friend’s guitar pick without asking and then lose it, or when you forget to bring money to buy hotdogs or— _or_ _any situation other than this.”_

“That’s fair,” she sighed. “But it’s true. Being a time traveller also comes with rules… and I’ve managed to break basically all of them in the past hour. Tori is going to kill me.” 

“Tori?” 

“My sister,” Rose elaborated. “The fact that I inadvertently sent three people not licenced to travel spiralling through time…” Her hands gripped the steering wheel. “We know where they landed— the Orpheum— because that’s the portal they went through. We just have to figure out _when.”_

He groaned, “Please stop saying ‘when’ in that kind of context. ‘When’ they are, ‘when’ they went... It’s throwing my head through a loop.” 

“Sorry. But they could be in 1820, or 2143, we don’t know. We have to figure it out.” 

After a moment, Bobby whispered, “We will figure it out, right?” 

“We will.”

* * *

> **_— 2020 —_ **

“Start talking,” Flynn folded her arms. “Where the hell did you come from?” 

“We need to get out of here,” Luke rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “What if that Covington guy is still after us?” 

“We left Bobby behind,” Reggie ran a hand through his hair. “Shit, we left him with Caleb.” 

Alex started to pace, “What the hell is going on?” 

“We have a show here in two hours,” Luke added.

“Slow your roll,” Julie finally spoke. “Don’t all talk at once. There’s no way you have a show here tonight, nothing’s booked.” 

“We’re in a band called Sunset Curve, tonight is supposed to be a big deal for us,” he explained. 

Flynn looked around as Julie pulled out her phone. “Yeah, there’s no way you’re playing tonight. And Sunset Swerve? Never heard of you.”

“Sunset _Curve,”_ the three boys corrected almost instantly, the one thing to get them to snap out of their collective panic. 

Julie stared at her phone, reading the words again just to make sure. “There is a Sunset Curve. And you were due to perform at the Orpheum. But not tonight… _twenty-five_ years ago?” 

“I’m going to be sick,” Alex backed into the wall, closing his eyes and shaking. 

“That’s… not possible,” Flynn moved to read Julie’s phone. “It’s lying.” 

“It’s the internet, the only places that lie on the internet are about politics and the r/thatHappened thread.” She decided, before adding as an afterthought. “And those life hack Instagrams.” 

“Twenty-five years—” Reggie cut himself off, not sure what to make of it. 

“1995. You were supposed to play here, in 1995,” Julie spun around, walking purposefully towards the photo. “This was taken in 1995.” 

Luke walked over to her, peering over her shoulder. “Shit, that’s Bobby!” 

Reggie was by their sides in an instant. “That had to have been taken after we left,” he relaxed, taking a deep breath. “He’s okay.” 

“That’s my _mom,”_ Julie whispered, pointing at Rose. 

“Rose is your mom?” Alex joined them, the four of them crowding around the photo. 

Reggie hesitated, pulling the timepiece out from where it had slipped under his shirt. “She gave this to Bobby. It was hers.” 

“How—”

“Has anyone seen William, Flynn, and Julie?” Mrs Harrison’s voice echoed around the corridors. 

Willie groaned, “So much for getting back before she noticed.”

“They’re from 1995!” Flynn poked Luke’s arm. “How? How is this possible?” 

“I don’t know…” Julie trailed off, before announcing determinedly. “But they knew my mom, so they’re coming with us.” 

“Jules—” 

Nope, she wasn’t going to be argued with. “Keep your heads down so Mrs Harrison doesn’t notice. We’re going to my house for lunch break.” 

“Are you sure about this,” Willie asked curiously as they made their way back to the group, the boys following behind. 

“They knew my mom, Willie. That necklace was _hers._ I want to know what’s going on, and they probably want to get home… so we need to figure this out. Besides,” she nudged him. “I know you think the one with the fanny pack is cute.” 

“I—” Willie’s face flushed and he looked away. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

Julie didn’t even bother hiding her smile. “Sure.” 

Mrs Harrison sent them a sceptical look as the trio returned, not even bothering to ask for an excuse that wouldn’t end up satisfactory. “We’re taking the lunch break now, be back at school by 2. I’d appreciate it if you weren’t late this time,” she directed her gaze at Willie and he shrugged. 

“Traffic?” He supplied weakly. 

Her eyebrow quirked upwards, “I’m going to pretend you don’t skate to class everyday because I’m hungry and want to get to lunch. I’ll see you again at 2.” 

“Wait,” Reggie caught Julie’s arm as they left the Orpheum. “Could you wait a couple of minutes? I just need to do something quickly. Y’know, to process.” 

She nodded sympathetically, “Sure. My tia offered to pick me up in her minivan so we have as long as it takes for her to get here.” 

When Reggie disappeared around the corner, Luke followed at a distance. Alex sat down on one of the benches and tried to wrap his head around the whole situation as Willie sat down next to him. “So, you’re from the past,” Willie mused, bumping his shoulder against Alex’s. 

“That makes you from the future,” Alex replied, a drumstick spinning between his fingers. “Somehow I thought saying it would make it seem less weird. Guess I was wrong.” 

“It’s gonna be fine, dude,” Willie reassured him. “We’ll figure it out, and you guys will be on your way home in no time. Shame though, you seem like a cool person to get to know.” 

Reggie groaned when he realised that the couch was gone because of _course_ it wouldn’t be where he left it twenty-five years ago. He cursed, losing his footing as he tried to scramble up the wall anyway. He probably would have hit the ground if Luke hadn’t been there to grab him at the last second. “Reg,” he steadied him. “You good?” 

“I just wanted to get onto that ledge,” he sighed. “It’s fine, it’s not important.” Luke got down on one knee and Reggie eyed him in confusion. “Are you proposing, Patterson? Because you know I’m unavailable.” 

Luke rolled his eyes, “I’m giving you a boost, dork.” 

Reggie smiled, ruffling Luke’s hair and using his leg as a step up so he could pull himself onto the ledge. He removed the brick and pulled out the scrap of paper. 

I’m sorry. I’m going to do whatever I can to fix this. Everything’s going to be okay, I promise - B.

He almost tucked it into his pocket for safe-keeping, but a small, hopeful part of him decided to write back. Even if there was likely no way it would reach him. “Hey, Luke? You got a pen?” 

(Luke was the most likely person to always have a pen on him, because song inspiration was known to strike at any given moment, and he had to be able to write it down.)

Reggie managed to catch it in mid-air, scribbling a little on the corner of the note to get it to work. He replied:

Already miss you. I’m in 2020, so there’s that. It’s weird. I’ve only been here for like twenty minutes and we’ve found that cool girl Rose’s kid? And Alex is eyeing this other guy, so I think he has a crush. I don’t know how to get home, but we’re looking for answers and we think Rose’s kid has them, or at least she wants them. Time travel is real? Who would have thought, right? I wonder if they’ve made any more Star Wars movies… Anyway, we’re all alive. We’ll find you, somehow. It’ll be fine. We’ll be fine. - Reggie :)

He tucked it back in the brick before jumping down next to Luke and meeting the others on the street as Julie’s aunt pulled up. The woman tipped her sunglasses to get a better look at the boys. 

  
“You know Julie? That makes my job a whole lot easier. Get in, _mijos._ We’re going to talk about time travel.”


	2. Just Like Ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tia Victoria is all-knowing, in any and all timelines.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like this, please leave comments and kudos :) I love hearing what y'all think of my work!!

> _**— 2020 —** _

It was weird being in the studio again. Julie had almost completely avoided this place after her mom died. But here she was, sitting on the couch wedged between three teenagers who had somehow managed to time travel from 1995, Flynn, and Willie. Tia Victoria sat in front of them on one of the stools, arms folded and expression clouded, like she’d been preparing for this but still couldn’t quite believe it. 

In a way, that was exactly how she was feeling. 

“Julie, our family are time travellers,” she revealed. 

Julie blinked, “Could you repeat that?” 

“We’re time travellers. I am - well, I _was._ Your mother was, too. We retired a long time ago though, long before you were born. It was too dangerous, and we’d managed to get the attention of the wrong kind of people— the Time Collectors— Caleb Covington and his boys,” Victoria explained. “There are two timepieces, the key to activating the portals. They are too powerful to be kept together, so we separated them. I had one, your mother had the other. She did, at least, until in 1995, when she met four boys on the same night that Covington caught up to her. Rose panicked, and she gave the necklace to your friend Bobby, thinking he would unsuspectingly take it away from Covington.” 

“But we were already in trouble with him,” Luke chimed in. “Bobby made a deal with him for the Orpheum gig.” 

“It could have been coincidence, or maybe not, but that’s not something Rose ever figured out,” She continued. “When they figured out when you ended up, the three of us made a plan to get you back. Whatever we planned in 1995, our Plan B was for us to send you back from 2020, we just had to wait twenty-five years to implement it. Rose died before she had the chance.” 

Julie stared at her aunt, her eyes flicking between her and the three accidental-time travellers on the couch next to her. “We’re _time travellers?”_

“When you’re old enough, if Rose still had her timepiece she would have given it to you. The timepiece that’s currently hanging around Reggie’s neck,” Victoria pointed out. 

Reggie instantly pulled it off, holding it out to her. “Take it.” 

“That’s a sweet gesture, _mijo,”_ She looked at him sadly, “But that’s your ticket home.” 

He was torn. On one hand, it was what had gotten them into this mess. On the other hand, it was the last thing that Bobby had given him before they were separated. On the other _other_ hand, it was never truly his to begin with, it was Rose’s, and now it should be Julie’s. Reggie wanted to simultaneously get as far away from it as possible, give it to Julie, and treasure it forever all at once. 

“You said Plan B,” Alex asked hesitantly. “That implies Plan A didn’t work. What was Plan A, and why didn’t it work?” 

“I’m not sure, it changes,” Victoria replied flippantly, before elaborating based on the confused looks on each of the children’s faces. “Time isn’t linear. Yes, if you go back then you can change history, but that isn’t always how it works. Let’s say that right now, it’s running parallel. In 1995, there’s a version of me, Rose, and Bobby, all trying to get you three home. Here, we are both experiencing the fallout of their plan, and the result of no plan at all, because it’s not happened yet, and simultaneously already happened.” 

_How the hell were they supposed to process that?_ Alex took a deep breath before standing up and walking out, muttering something along the lines of “I need some air,” but considerably less coherent. The most surprising part was that when his friends hesitated between giving him a minute and following him, Willie was already out the door after him before they had the chance to even get up from their seats. 

Reggie looked around before saying quietly, “This used to be Bobby’s garage. If you’re here, and you were here then, then where is he?” 

“Anything could have happened between you leaving in 1995 and appearing here,” Victoria replied gently. “But your Bobby, the one you know, he’s exactly where you left him and he’s fighting to get you back.”

“What do we do in the meantime? I take it it’s not as simple as going back to the Orpheum and waving that timepiece around until a portal opens again?” Flynn asked, glancing at where it rested around Reggie’s neck. 

Victoria sighed, “The portal works on specific days, we have to wait until the times align to next access it. Until then, you keep a low profile, and you go to school with my niece and her friends. We’ll find a way to get you into the music program.” 

“They don’t have IDs or anything,” Flynn pointed out. “They don’t exist in this timeline.” 

“Woah,” Luke let out a breath. “We’re like ghosts.” 

“This is just… too weird,” Julie decided, putting her head in her hands. 

Victoria put a reassuring hand on Julie’s shoulder. “I know it’s a lot to take in. I’ve sorted everything in advance, as far as everyone else knows, Ray and I are fostering you for a while, so you’re going to be enrolled at Los Feliz.” She rolled up her sleeve to reveal a small tattoo, a date just above her elbow. Today's date. “It’s not like I was going to forget, but Rose wanted to make sure.” 

Julie’s eyes landed on it for a second, wondering how she’d never noticed it before. “My mom had that tattoo.” 

Outside, Alex was leaning against the wall, resting his head against the bricks and looking up at the slow-moving clouds. Willie briefly hesitated, wondering what he was even _doing_ out there, before he took the space against the wall next to Alex and copied him, looking up at the clouds. “You okay?” 

“I don’t handle change well,” he sighed. “I just time travelled twenty-five years into the future. That’s a big freaking change!” 

“Could be worse?” Willie suggested weakly. 

“How? How could this be worse?” Alex turned to look at him, folding his arms. “How could this possibly be worse.” 

“You could be alone,” he replied, nudging Alex’s shoulder. “But you’re not alone, are you? You have your bandmates, well… most of them. You’ve got Victoria, who seems to know what she’s doing. You’ve got Julie and Flynn, and you’ve got me. This… it’s crazy, yeah. But you’re not alone.” Willie offered him a shy smile and Alex felt himself blushing, and he forced himself to look back up at the clouds before Willie could notice. 

Luke was happy to find out that his guitar from ‘95 was still in Bobby’s— no, the _Molinas’_ garage-turned-music-studio. Along with a newer grand piano, Reggie’s bass, a keyboard, and Alex’s drum kit. There were several other guitars that he didn’t recognise, but he didn’t touch them. Luke did sit down in front of the piano and marvel at it, running his fingers softly over the keys the moment Victoria left them alone to get lunch. He soon found out that most of their stuff was still there, tucked away in the loft for when they’d eventually need it. 

Julie sat on the couch quietly, the cogs in her mind turning as she mulled over all of the new information. _My family are time travellers. Time travel exists. My family are time travellers. Time travel exists._

_Time travel is possible._

_She could see her mom again._

* * *

> **_— 1995 —_ **

“Rose! Tori!” Bobby came running into the studio, a piece of paper flapping in his hand as he did so. “You’re going to want to see this.” He leant against the piano, out of breath, before handing the piece of paper over. At first he didn’t want to share anything, because it was private, and it was from Reggie. But then he realised that this could be their ticket home. This could help him bring them back, and he jumped at the chance. (Literally, he jumped down from the ledge in such a rush he almost sprained his ankle.) 

“You okay?” Tori watched him curiously. They’d all basically moved into Bobby’s garage to figure this out, not wanting to assume that Rose and Tori’s place was safe. If Caleb had tracked them to LA, to the Orpheum, then he could have tracked them to their house too. Luckily Bobby had never exchanged personal details with Caleb, so it hadn’t ended up being a problem. Bobby lived in the garage, and his parents lived in the house. He’d moved out, wanting at least a bit of independence when he turned eighteen, but hadn’t been able to afford an apartment. He was slightly older than the others in the band, not by long, just a few months. But the garage was his space, their space, and it was the perfect place to figure out their plan. 

Rose took the paper from his hand and spread it out in front of her, attempting to iron out the creases with her hand before reading it. “Holy shit,” she whispered. 

“Language,” Tori warned. 

“Holy shit,” she repeated. 

_“Language,”_ Tori warned, more firmly. 

Rose ignored her, staring at the paper. 

Already miss you. I’m in 2020, so there’s that. It’s weird. I’ve only been here for like twenty minutes and we’ve found that cool girl Rose’s kid? And Alex is eyeing this other guy, so I think he has a crush. I don’t know how to get home, but we’re looking for answers and we think Rose’s kid has them, or at least she wants them. Time travel is real? Who would have thought, right? I wonder if they’ve made any more Star Wars movies… Anyway, we’re all alive. We’ll find you, somehow. It’ll be fine. We’ll be fine. - Reggie :)

“Where did you find this? In that spot of yours?” She asked curiously. “If he was in the future, there’d always be a possibility to write to him, but it would never have worked both ways. I can’t believe it does. Are you sure this is him?” 

“Positive, that’s Reggie’s handwriting. They’re in 2020.” 

“Destination 2020,” Rose grinned. “Congratulations Bobbers, thanks to you and your boyfriend, we’re one step closer to bringing them home.” Then she re-read it. “Wait, _what do you mean I have a kid?”_

* * *

> **_— 2020 —_ **

Tia Victoria wasn’t kidding when she said she had connections to get everything sorted. The LF music program was prestigious, and when the boys started at the Arts school three days later, moving their stuff into a shared room, they managed to get auditions for the program. Whether it was because Victoria had pull with Lessa or because her ex was Mrs Harrison, no one was quite sure. 

Unfortunately, due to the school rules, they had to audition separately. Each person got a private audience with Mrs Harrison and she decided whether or not they got in. Despite being assured of how good they were (although it’s not like they could say ‘in 1995 we were going to play the Orpheum, so we _are_ musicians’) it was the policy to have an official audition for each new student. 

Alex went first to get it out of the way, pulling out a drum solo from one of the songs from Sunset Curve’s original demo, called _In Your Starlight._ He was shaking right until when he sat down, sticks in hand. But when he started, the nerves melted away and he did what he was born to do. The others were pushing each other out of the way, desperate to try and watch the auditions in the small window of the door to the music room. 

Reggie went next, plugging in his bass and playing flawlessly, bouncing around on stage and enjoying himself once he got into the performance. He ended it with a wink at Mrs Harrison, accompanied with, “I _also_ shred on the banjo.” 

She just stared at him in surprise before nodding slowly. “I will… definitely keep that in mind.” 

Last up was Luke, and he had been bouncing on the balls of his feet while Reggie performed, filled with nervous energy. He rubbed a hand up and down the back of his neck waiting as his bandmate finished the audition. Julie watched Luke for a second before approaching him. “Nervous?” 

“Nah,” he lied, “Why would I be nervous?” 

She laughed, “Everyone gets nervous, Luke. But you’re gonna kill it. Just like Alex killed it, just like Reggie is killing it.” 

“You’ve got a lot of confidence for someone who’s never heard me play,” Luke pointed out. 

Julie shrugged, “I may have found the Sunset Curve demo when I was helping you guys sort your stuff out in the loft. And listened to it.” 

He instantly brightened, “Really? What did you think?” 

“That in this timeline or any other, you’re good enough to play the Orpheum,” she assured him. “Now go in there and get yourself a spot in music class.” 

Reggie leant in the doorway, propping the door open as Luke ducked under his arm and walked in, shooting them a quick wave as Reggie moved and the door shut behind him. They crowded back around the door again, each person trying to get a good enough view. Flynn checked her watch, “Damn, incoming.” 

“It’s weird that you know Carrie’s schedule,” Willie pointed out. 

“How else am I supposed to avoid her?” She shot back. 

Julie scoffed, but before she could add to Willie’s comment, Carrie herself appeared at the end of the hall. According to Flynn, she had an exact morning routine which she stuck to, and this morning was no different. Despite the fact that Carrie was the third person in their shared room, evidently only Flynn had picked up on what Carrie does and doesn’t like to do. 

“What’s with the crowd?” Carrie asked as she reached them, either mildly interested or just waiting for them to move so she could get into class. Could be a mixture of both, it was always hard to tell with Carrie. “Did I miss something important?” 

“Auditions,” Reggie explained. “Me, Luke, and Alex are hoping to get into the music program.” 

“It’s pretty elite,” she mused. “You got what it takes? Very competitive too… a lot of _participation_ involved.” Carrie shot a look at Julie and received a glare back for her efforts. 

“Watch it, Carrie,” Flynn warned. 

Carrie rolled her eyes, “It’s an innocent comment, Flynn. Don’t be so dramatic.” She pushed past them to peer into the audition room. “Who’s he?” 

“Luke,” Reggie supplied cheerfully. “He’s the lead singer in our band, Sun—” 

“They don’t have a name yet,” Flynn cut in suddenly, elbowing Reggie lightly. 

Carrie rolled her eyes and returned her focus to Luke’s audition, allowing Flynn to whisper to them. “Guys, if she looks up Sunset Curve she’ll see your faces and the band that disappeared before playing the Orpheum in _1995._ You gotta be more careful.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s cool, just be careful next time. Okay?” She nudged him and he nodded. 

Julie slowly shifted so that she was in front of Carrie and had a better view of Luke’s audition as he reached the bridge of _Now or Never._ Mrs Harrison was smiling and tapping her foot— a good sign, in her opinion— as Luke pulled the ultimate rockstar move (seriously, it was impressive but Julie couldn’t help but roll her eyes) and threw his guitar over his shoulder. Carrie made a noise of approval at his showmanship.

When the auditions finished, class started and Mrs Harrison spoke to the three boys outside. After that, they took their seats next to Flynn and Julie in relief and the first day of classes went off without a hitch.

At the end of the day, Reggie took a bus to the Orpheum. He came prepared this time, bringing a small step with him. Sure, he received some strange looks on the bus for his efforts, but it was worth it. A small pad rested in his pocket. He climbed up to the ledge and sat down, this time bringing his legs up and propping them against the end of the ledge to be more comfortable. Reggie removed the brick and put it on his lap, ignoring the way it made his dark jeans a shade lighter from the dust. 

He froze. 

_His letter to Bobby was gone._

Instantly Reggie replaced the brick, looking around to make sure no one was watching. How was that possible? No one in 2020 knew about this spot except Alex and Luke, and they wouldn’t tell anyone. Julie knew that there was a reason this place was special, but he hadn’t explained it yet. He leant back against the part of the wall that his back was pressed up against and closed his eyes. 

Not even this place was safe anymore. 

He considered leaving, but the thought left his mind as soon as Reggie opened his eyes and saw the brick _glowing._ The brick that he’d just place back in the wall was glowing, like someone had lit a fire behind it. The light extinguished almost as quickly as it arrived, and Reggie tentatively pulled the brick back out. 

To find a neatly folded piece of paper behind it. 

Reg. I got your letter. I don’t know how it works because surely I’d be able to talk to you, but you wouldn’t be able to talk back, right? Considering I’m twenty-five years in the past, so you should receive it in the future. Anyway, it doesn’t matter, I’m just glad you’re okay. 2020? Rose and Tori are helping me figure out a plan, and we’re going to get you home. Talk soon - B. 

Reggie stared at it, his hands almost shaking too much as he pulled a blank piece of paper out of the pad and scribbled down onto it.

You got my letter? Oh my god, you got my letter. Are you okay? I have so much to tell you. Are you still by the brick?

He put the paper in the hole and replaced the brick, desperately hoping that Bobby was still there to reply.

~~You got my letter? Oh my god, you got my letter. Are you okay? I have so much to tell you. Are you still by the brick?~~

As much as I want to hear all of your news, I need you to know something. Remember Caleb? Him, Dante and Fuego are known as the Time Collectors. They want your timepiece, and they don’t care who they have to hurt to get it. Keep it safe, keep it hidden, and keep a low profile.

Reggie briefly remembered Victoria saying something about them.

~~You got my letter? Oh my god, you got my letter. Are you okay? I have so much to tell you. Are you still by the brick?~~

~~As much as I want to hear all of your news, I need you to know something. Remember Caleb? Him, Dante and Fuego are known as the Time Collectors. They want your timepiece, and they don't care who they have to hurt to get it. Keep it safe, keep it hidden, and keep a low profile.~~

Victoria already said about them, we’re keeping an eye out, don’t worry. What do you want to hear about first? School? New friends? 

The routine continued. Paper in hole, brick replaced, flash of light, repeat.

~~You got my letter? Oh my god, you got my letter. Are you okay? I have so much to tell you. Are you still by the brick?~~

~~As much as I want to hear all of your news, I need you to know something. Remember Caleb? Him, Dante and Fuego are known as the Time Collectors. They want your timepiece, and they don’t care who they have to hurt to get it. Keep it safe, keep it hidden, and keep a low profile.~~

~~Victoria already said about them, we’re keeping an eye out, don’t worry. What do you want to hear about first?~~ School  ~~? New friends?~~

School? Well Victoria got us into the music program, which is pretty cool. Had to audition for it and everything, but it went well. The school has a partnership with the Orpheum or something? It’s pretty rad. You’d like it - it’s an Arts school, but the science labs look awesome!

And so the conversation continued. By the time they’d finished writing back and forth, the sky had gone dark and Reggie had to get back to the school before curfew or Luke and Alex would worry. He signed off for the night and pocketed the conversation before heading towards the bus stop.

* * *

> **_— 1995 —_ **

“You’re in a good mood?” Tori mused, sipping on her tea as Bobby waltzed into the garage. 

He shrugged, “Maybe.” 

“Spill, Bobbit.” Rose set the pizza down on the table. “While we’ve been slaving away trying to help you bring your bandmates home… Tell me, what  _ have _ you been up to?” 

Tori elbowed her, rolling her eyes and Rose shrugged a weak apology for her bluntness. 

“I was talking to Reggie,” Bobby finally revealed. 

The girls shared a look.  _ “How?” _

“Sending notes back and forth behind the brick,” he explained. “It was great. He said they’re laying low at the school, Los Feliz? Future Tori sorted everything.” 

Rose nudged her sister appreciatively, “Look at future you being all dependable.” 

“Please don’t tell me anything else about future me, or future you, or future any of us, we’re screwing up the timeline enough as it is,” Tori dropped her head onto her folded arms and rested it on the table. “If we end up accidentally erasing ourselves, or getting in trouble with the Bureau— which we probably already are, in trouble with the Bureau— then I blame you.” 

“Fair, considering it  _ is _ your fault,” Bobby cut in. 

Rose rolled her eyes,  _ “Who _ made a deal with the devil-incarnate?” 

_ “Who _ thought it was a good idea to give me the timepiece?” He shot back. 

She laughed, “Fair. Fair. Any news on the Caleb front?” 

Tori sighed, “We had a little head start because Reggie told us what year he was in, but there’s a large chance by now that Caleb’s figured it out. We know they can travel between time periods without a timepiece, but we don’t know  _ how  _ they can do that. But that’s not the worst-case scenario here. By now, they’ve probably managed to work out where the boys are. Our time is running out, and so is the rest of Sunset Curve’s.” 

Rose rolled her eyes, “God, Tor. Dial down the drama a little?”   
  



	3. The Time Collectors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The music class gets an assignment, the boys and julie have a run in with the Time Collectors, and Bobby puts a plan in place.

> **_— 2020 —_ **

Julie took her seat, attempting to avoid making eye contact with Mrs Harrison. Naturally, the music teacher sought her out anyway. She raised a subtle eyebrow at her. _Today?_ Julie shook her head and looked down at her feet. _Not today, not tomorrow, not in this lifetime or the next._ Well, she wasn’t going to be that dramatic. But at the moment, music was too tied to her mom for Julie to even contemplate playing. 

Unfortunately, when Carrie was being less than warm the other day, Reggie and Alex picked up on it. While Mrs Harrison was talking to Nick, Reggie nudged her. “What did Carrie mean? Y’know, when she said that thing about participation and Flynn looked like she wanted to murder her?” 

She sighed, sinking further into her seat. “I used to make music with my mom. I haven’t played since she died.” 

“I’m sorry,” Alex sent her a reassuring look. “We didn’t know.” 

Julie gave them a weak smile in response, “How could you? Yeah, they’re this close to kicking me out.” She held up her hand, thumb and forefinger almost completely touching. “If they do, I’ll end up in the art program with Willie instead, so I’ll still be here… but it won’t be the same.” 

“You said you made music with her,” Luke asked, and Julie turned to look at him. “Was she talented?” 

She managed a genuine smile at that, “Yeah. Yeah, she was.”

* * *

> **_— 1995 —_ **

Rose leant against the piano, scribbling on the manuscript paper. She was almost done, and it was a song that she’d been working with for a long time now, never able to get it quite right. When she woke up that morning, filled with inspiration and the perfect changes that she’d been missing, she set to work immediately. Rarely a morning person, she found herself in the garage before 9am, head buried in her notebook. 

Bobby was pouring over her family’s notes about the timepieces on the couch, desperate for more information as she worked. He did so silently, not wanting to disturb Rose while she was ‘in the zone’ after finding out the hard way when he did the same with Luke a few years ago. She didn’t ask him anything, and he didn’t say anything to her, so they shared the space comfortably. 

The timepiece that Reggie had was special, and the rightful owner of it would be the chosen one. Although Bobby had a feeling that there was little to no chance of Reggie being the rightful owner, at the same time it didn’t seem like Rose would be either. All signs pointed to Rose’s mysterious daughter from 2020. The only problem with that was Tori had made a rule to not talk about their future selves in case they managed to accidentally alter time in any way, so only Bobby was allowed to know about Julie and her activities in the future. The specific timepiece that Bobby had given Reggie was different from other timepieces, making it possible to trick the Time Collectors and hide from them. 

As he read, Bobby made notes on a letter to Reggie to keep him updated about what was possible with his timepiece. Especially when he found out that the timepiece made it possible to scatter the Time Collectors throughout time. But that didn’t mean that Bobby didn’t have a plan of his own, a plan that didn’t involve keeping Rose and Tori up to date. He stood up, glancing at Rose. “I’m going out for a bit.” 

She waved him away blindly with one hand. “Can you bring back some of those mini waffles when you come back?” 

“Sure,” he replied. 

_If he came back._

If Tori couldn’t use her timepiece to get him to 2020, then he’d just have to get the Time Collectors to take him. 

One way or another, he was finding his family. 

“I did it!” Rose grinned, as he left. “I finished it!” She stood up and lifted the dartboard off of its hook, slotting it behind it as she put it back. “For safekeeping.” 

The most likely place he’d run into the Time Collectors was the Orpheum, so once he slipped past security and hovered by the portal, he got spotted by them. Fuego grabbed him by the collar and Caleb smirked. “You’re going to take us to that timepiece,” he announced. 

“You’re not going to get it,” Bobby replied firmly. “It’s not yours to take.” 

“Wasn’t yours to give away, either,” he smiled, shoving Bobby through the open portal before disappearing through after him. 

* * *

> **_— 2020 —_ **

“Your assignment this week,” Mrs Harrison paused for effect, scanning the class with her eyes. “Is to tell me something about yourself, and how your life has been tied to music. I can be from receiving your first piano, talking about a friend or family member who got your into playing an instrument… Anything from performing _Twinkle Twinkle Little Star_ on repeat for your parents at dinner times. I want to know what music means to you, from the very beginning. You can do it with a performance, with an essay, with a video… Show the class what music means to you.” 

_Easy._ Julie thought to herself. _I’ll just do an essay and be done with it._ Technically an essay would still count as participation, and it wouldn’t involve trying to sing or play. It would probably be hell to write, but at least it would be manageable. 

Luke remembered getting his first guitar. It was for Christmas, when he was eight. His parents would’ve preferred him learning classical guitar, but as soon as he got into rock then those hopes were out of the window because he was barely a teenager but somehow he knew that _this_ was what he was born to do. He stumbled across Alex playing on the old kit in the school’s basement when he was trying to hide from the Principal, who’d been hounding him after he skipped out on a Calculus test, and the two of them found Reggie at an open mic night. He’d performed a country song that Luke wasn’t entirely fond of, but he had a killer voice and as soon as they found out he was a bassist as well, Sunset Curve was already almost complete. But they were missing something, their sound needed something else and when they heard Bobby practicing on their way to the bus stop one afternoon, suddenly they were in his garage and asking him to join the band too. 

Reggie picked up an instrument to distract him at first, but then he fell in love with it. It helped that he could plug his headphones into the amp and play to drown out his parents arguing, but then it became so much more than that. He loved playing bass, but then he discovered country music and picked up the banjo as well. He didn’t have much before the hurricane that was Luke Patterson swept into his life and asked him to join his band, but after that he had a family. Sunset Curve was his family.

Alex started dancing at a young age, but after a few years of that his dad decided it wasn’t masculine enough, and sent him towards an instrument instead. Drums worked best for his anxiety and he had a kit at home to hit whenever everything got too much. When he tried to hide out in the school’s basement while he brought himself back from an anxiety attack, he discovered a drum kit from the school’s long-forgotten music program and as soon as Alex realised no one was ever going to use it, he claimed it as his own and disappeared down there at any available opportunity. 

When Luke found him and asked him to join a band with him, he was nervous at first, but Luke had a habit of bringing out the best in people, so he ended up joining him. Then they met Reggie, and he joined the group too, and Bobby brought great cooking along with a rehearsal space and insane guitar talent, and they became a band. It was late one night, when they were all lying on the floor of the garage and staring at the ceiling, when Reggie finally came up with the name _Sunset Curve._ They printed it on t-shirts as soon as possible. 

The boys knew _exactly_ what they wanted to do with this assignment. 

* * *

When Bobby stepped out into 2020, he didn’t know what to expect. He should’ve expected things to go better than they did, but when Caleb hauled him along and Dante explained the idea for his plan, he knew he probably should’ve run this by Rose and Tori first. The same way he should’ve run asking a favour from sketchy ex-magician Caleb Covington past his bandmates first, before getting them into all of this mess. 

Somehow, Dante knew that Bobby and Reggie wrote each other letters. He didn’t know how they sent them, but he knew that’s what happened. He produced a postcard, almost an exact replica of Bobby’s handwriting, and disappeared into Los Feliz to find a way to get it to Reggie. 

Luke, Alex, and Reggie were lying on the floor next to each other, instead of on the beds. They _had_ brought the pillows down with them, though, so it was relatively comfy. When someone knocked on the door, Luke was the first to get to his feet. He opened the door a crack, and then a little wider when he realised it was Julie. “Oh, hey.” 

“You okay?” She frowned. 

“Mrs Harrison’s assignment is… bringing up a lot of stuff,” he replied flatly. “None of us had it that great in ‘95.” 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she put a hand on his arm comfortingly. “You’re not the only one hit by this trainwreck of an assignment. My mom and music are pretty much synonymous in my experience, so…” Julie trailed off awkwardly. 

“That sucks.” 

“Majorly. Anyway, I was coming to ask you guys about my mom? About what she was like when you met her? I know you didn’t know her for very long, but—” Julie caught herself, distracted. “What’s this?” 

There was a postcard pinned to the door. It hadn’t been there when the boys arrived back at the dorm, so Julie was the first to see it. She pulled it off and turned it over, and Luke caught sight of the name on the address box. “Reg.” 

He stood up and came over, Alex following after. “It’s from Bobby,” Reggie’s face lit up. “He’s here. He’s outside.” 

“Maybe we should think about this,” Julie warned. “It’s past curfew and—” 

The boys were already pushing past her, rushing towards the exit and with a sigh, she shot off after them. She could just about hear shouts as she got closer to the door, closer to where the boys were. 

“It’s a trap!” Bobby shouted. “Go to the brick, there’s instructions there, just _go!_ Go before they catch you!” 

The boys skidded to a halt as Caleb rounded the corner, Dante and Fuego following him. Reggie stared in horror, rooted to the spot. “I’m not leaving you again!” 

“RUN!” 

Alex grabbed him, dragging him along as Julie grabbed Luke, pulling him through the door and waiting until the other two were inside before slamming it and locking it behind them. They scrambled back to the boys’ room, collapsing onto the floor in exhaustion and shock from the unexpected sprint and near-miss at almost being caught by Caleb. 

“I’m guessing—” Julie tried to catch her breath. “I’m guessing those were the Time Collectors my Tía warned us about?” 

“Bingo,” Alex replied. 

Reggie sank down against the closed door, sliding until he reached the ground and pulling his knees up to his chest, hugging them tightly. 

“The brick—” Luke started. 

“Is where we leave messages for each other,” Reggie explained. “It doesn’t just work from the past to the future, it works in reverse too. I can still send messages from here. If Bobby left me something there, then it’s important. But how the hell did he get here?” 

“This… _shit,”_ Julie whistled. “Look, my aunt dropped these off earlier. Three phones, three of you. I’ll show you how they work later but all you need to know how to do now is texting, so we can stay in contact.” 

“Texting?” 

“This is going to be harder than I thought,” she sighed. 

Alex started to pace, “We need to see what Bobby left for Reggie behind the brick.” 

_“You_ need to stay here,” Julie announced pointedly. “Those Time Collectors are looking for _you._ If you leave here, then they’re more likely to find you. If you tell me exactly where it is, would you be okay with me getting it for you?” 

“Do I have much of a choice?” He raised an eyebrow. 

She shrugged, “Not really. I’m not letting them get to you, so… The only other way is if I come with you, and I’m not letting all of you go.” 

* * *

Bobby listened to them finalise their plan, waiting until Dante and Caleb got in an argument about what to do next. His eyes strayed to the timepiece that Fuego was holding. His one ticket out of there. While they were distracted, he worked on the knot tying his hands together, slowly picking at it until it became loose. 

“This time, he will cooperate when his boyfriend comes for him,” Caleb told Dante. 

Bobby had to admit. Sure, Caleb was a weird-dressing-time-travelling-pain-in-the-ass, but at least he wasn’t a homophobe. He finally managed to work through the knot, and swiped the timepiece of out Fuego’s grasp before shooting off down the road, with the Time Collectors hot on his trail as soon as they realised what was happening.

* * *

They briefed Flynn and Willie on the plan in the morning, and although they were both hesitant, in the end, they agreed it was better than all the boys going, or Reggie going alone. Flynn lied to their teacher and said that Julie was in bed with a headache, and that Reggie had food poisoning and wouldn’t be able to make it to morning classes, and she had to have been convincing enough that they didn’t question it. Before they left for first period, Alex and Luke made sure they were going to be okay. 

“If you see the Time Collectors—” Alex started. 

“We run, I know,” Reggie reassured him. 

“And text us,” Luke replied. “Text us, and we’ll find you.” 

“It’s going to be okay,” Julie smiled at them. “We got this.” 

Reggie went first, sliding out of the ground-floor window and landing on his feet, as Julie eased her way out too, since it was the easiest exit that was least likely to get them noticed by anyone, and pulled her hoodie around her head before stuffing her hands into her pockets and blending into the masses of people on the LA sidewalk. They caught the bus to nearby the Orpheum, slipping into the alleyway and realising with a grin that the step Reggie had put there was still where he left it. 

Reggie moved it into place and hauled himself up onto the ledge, removing the brick to get the piece of paper behind it. It detailed Bobby’s plan to get all of the Time Collectors in the same place so that they could scatter them, get rid of them for good. Yes, it was a good plan, but when Julie realised the _time frame_ that the plan was supposed to take place in, the two of them found themselves rushing through the Orpheum before hiding behind a wall as Julie with the dials as per Bobby’s instructions. 

_“This better work,”_ she mumbled under her breath as she heard them coming. 

“Reggie!” Bobby yelled, and Reggie started to move towards him, despite the fact that the Time Collectors were incoming. “Do it! Do it now!” 

Julie panicked, finishing with the timepiece and holding it out in front of them like a shield, her other hand clasped tightly in Reggie’s as there was a flash of white light and the Time Collectors— _and Bobby—_ disappeared. 

“Where did they go?” Julie stared at the space they had been. 

Reggie froze, “I think it’s more of a _when_ did they go.” He looked around. “Bobby? Bobby?” 

She squeezed his hand reassuringly. “He found you once, he’ll do it again. Do you mind if we make a quick stop before going back to LF?” 

“Sure, I think I need to process,” he gestured vaguely around them like he was trying to describe what he wanted to process, before he sighed. “Process. Just process. I need to process.” 

“I’d be concerned if you didn’t.”

* * *

Carrie was first to perform her assignment. It was a musical about growing up with a famous rockstar for a dad and making her own path and starting Dirty Candi. Flynn followed her, with rap about how her parents started her out on the trumpet but then she decided she wanted to go into DJing or music management when she grew up. Alex handed in a short essay and a video— that Willie had helped him with— of him playing the drums so that he wouldn’t have to do it alone in front of the class. Nick did a video presentation on how his dads got him into performing, starting with dance and then music when he got a bit older. 

Luke fidgeted nervously in his seat. 

_ Julie and Reggie weren’t back yet.  _

_ Julie and Reggie weren’t back yet.  _

He glanced up at the clock, which seemed to be moving slower than usual. 

_ Julie and Reggie weren’t back yet. _

He shared a look with Alex, and he shook his head. They would’ve texted if something had happened. They  _ should’ve _ texted, if something had happened. 

_ Why hadn’t they texted? _

Before Luke could allow himself to spiral any further, the door burst open and Julie and Reggie practically fell in. Mrs Harrison turned to look at them, an eyebrow raised. She was about to call on them when Luke grabbed his acoustic and made his way up to the stage for his performance, playing a soft melody as he talked. 

Julie and Reggie collapsed into the chairs behind Alex and Flynn, leaning against each other as they caught their breath. “Lost track—” Reggie started.

“Of time—” Julie finished. “Long story, we—” 

“Orpheum, and then—” 

“Time Collectors, and—” 

“Scattered, and—” 

Alex held up a hand. “I have questions. So many questions. But this? This is weird, even for us. Explain after class?” 

Breathless, the two of them nodded firmly. 

Julie watched as Luke finished his story, ending with the formation of the band-without-a-name (Alex had clued him in on the ‘Sunset Curve is back in the 90s’ realisation). Reggie went up first, and Julie pulled the music out of her band. 

_ Reggie flopped down on the couch, grateful for something left behind from ‘95 to anchor him, as Julie paced around the garage. She groaned, trying to make sense of it all. Julie put her head in her hands and leant against the wall. The action seemed to dislodge the dartboard from the nail it was hanging from, and the whole thing fell to the ground. She jumped, still on edge from the run in with the Time Collectors, and bent down to pick it up. For some reason, there were several pieces of paper clipped to the back of it, which had to have been what made it so unsteady when it was hanging up. She unfolded it, recognising her mom’s handwriting immediately.  _

_ It was a song. _

Julie wasn’t sure what decision she had made in her mind when she realised she wanted to play  _ Wake Up _ for the assignment. She wasn’t sure how old the song was, or when her mother had written it, but it was beautiful, and she’d found it at the perfect time. Just when she was finding all this new stuff out about her mom, making her doubt how much she’d really known about her, she happened to stumble across a song that makes her fingers itch for the piano keys. 

Even gone, her mom was still managing to bring her back to music. 

Mrs Harrison looked at her expectantly as Reggie took his seat, and glanced at the papers in her hand, assuming it would be an essay. Her surprise was evident when Julie stood up and walked past her and towards the piano, sitting down before she could change her mind. Flynn tensed, her eyebrows shooting up as she watched silently.

Julie spread out the manuscript paper, taking a deep breath. She placed her fingers on the keys and refused to look anywhere but the music. There was a brief moment of hesitation before she forced herself to start, and was much better off for it. 

_ Here’s the one thing I want you to know _

_ You got some place to go _

_ Life’s a test, yes _

_ But you go toe-to-toe _

_ You don’t give up, no, you grow _

Luke stared at her, his jaw falling open against his own will because Julie could  _ sing. _ Out of everything he’d expected, it definitely wasn’t this girl to be even more like a human wrecking ball than she’d been when they first met. 

If Sunset Curve could exist in 2020, then Luke had to find another way to share his music. He couldn’t  _ not _ do that, because although he’d be fine still making music, you can’t make a connection with people, you can’t use music to make a  _ difference _ in people’s lives if it’s only being played at school. Bobby said to blend in, so as long as he’s okay with them forming a temporary new band… 

That band  _ had _ to have Julie Molina in it. 


	4. Settling In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke has a plan, Willie helps Alex, and Bobby tries to find answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter's late! Swamped with schoolwork this week :/ I'll try to update again on Monday if I can to get back on schedule!!

> **— _2020 —_**

Julie had a plan. It involved keeping the boys out of trouble until they could go back to 1995, and keeping a low profile. Especially now that her own rediscovery of music had been thrown into a mix. 

What she didn’t know was that Luke _also_ had a plan. 

Except his was more along the lines of:

Step 1: Check-in with Bobby.

Step 2: Rebrand Sunset Curve so they don’t get recognised in 2020. 

Step 3: Convince Julie to join Sunset Curve 2.0.

Willie burst into their room one morning, a grin on his face and a phone in his hand. “I have an idea.” 

Thankfully, they were all already awake, or there would have been some _serious_ trouble. Reggie is a morning person, but Alex and Luke? Not so much. Reggie stood up and went to see what Willie was up to. “Hey, Willie.” 

“Reggie, Luke, Alex,” he winked as he said Alex’s name and Alex ducked his head to hide the blush creeping into his cheeks. “I was thinking. We don’t know how long you guys are gonna be here for, _but_ I’d like to make your stay in 2020 as awesome as possible. So we’re going to make a video diary of all the cool stuff we’re going to do. When you go, we’ll have it to remember you by, and when you get to 2020 through your own timeline, we’ll leave a copy in a place for you to find. How’s that?” 

“That’s rad, dude,” Reggie replied excitedly. “How does it work?” 

Willie started the video and turned the camera around. “Now it’s recording. Got anything to say?” 

“I had leftover pizza for breakfast!” 

“That’s your first memory on this thing? Food?” Alex raised a judgemental eyebrow at his bandmate and Willie laughed. 

“What do you want to say for your first video appearance?” He swivelled the camera to face Alex. 

Alex shrugged, before spinning his drumstick around twice on his hand and catching it. “Hi, I guess. It’s better than Reggie’s pizza thing.” 

“Dude!” Reggie complained, throwing a sock at him. 

Alex scrambled away, _“Please_ tell me that was clean.” 

Willie turned the camera towards Luke. “Luke Patterson, do you have anything to say about being a time-travelling musician?” 

Luke grinned, a guitar pick between his teeth as he tried to reply without swallowing it. “Julie said she’s going to introduce us to a load of the music we missed!” 

“Huh, I did, didn’t I?” She replied, leaning against the doorway. “And if you’re going to talk about _time travel—_ Julie lowered her voice a little at that part— “Then at _least_ close the door first?” 

“That’s fair,” Alex smiled apologetically. 

* * *

> **_— 2019 —_ **

Bobby looked around. He was still in the Orpheum. Reggie and Julie were nowhere to be seen. It was hard to tell how much time had passed, but he was dazed from the ‘scattering’? Is that what he could call it? Anyway, he had to find them. He started the route to Los Feliz, looking around for any sign of them on the way there. 

When he finally arrived at the high school, he had to push his way through the students to get to the door alone. He thought he saw someone and in his attempt to follow them he bumped straight into a girl at her locker. The girl in pink looked him up and down, her forehead creasing. “Do I know you?” She asked cautiously, taking him in. 

He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m Bobby.”

“Carrie,” she replied. They both stood there for a moment. “What? Are you waiting for something? Please tell me you don’t want my Dad’s autograph.” 

“Why would I want your Dad’s—” he trailed off as soon as he saw her. “Julie!” 

Julie looked up, eyes widening before she tugged the brim of the cap on her head further down to obscure her face and ducked between the people. He followed her, trying to catch up and each time getting lost in the crowds of people. When Bobby finally emerged into a separate hallway, it was deserted, no sign of her. Then his eyes strayed to the janitor’s closet on his right and he slowly opened it. 

There she was, leaning against the shelf to catch her breath. Julie narrowed her eyes at him when she realised who had opened the door, folding her arms across her chest. “Who are you, and why are you following me?” 

“I’m Bobby?” He frowned. “We met last night? Kind of?”

“I think you have me confused with someone else.”

She didn’t recognise him. 

Which could only mean— 

“What year is it?” 

_“What?”_ Julie stared at him. “It’s 2019. And it has been for several months now. Are you okay?” 

Despite the bomb being dropped on him that the scattering had sent him back a year, before the boys arrived, he paused. Bobby took a look at Julie, at the bags under her eyes and instantly softened. “Are _you_ okay?” 

She sighed, leaning against the wall. “I’m tired of being asked that.” And then, after a beat. “I haven’t been okay in a really long time.” 

“Why?” 

“It’s complicated.”

He raised an eyebrow at her, “Usually when people say that, it’s not actually complicated, they just don’t want to say.” 

“You’re annoyingly perceptive,” she shot back, before finally conceding. “My mom died a few months ago.” 

Oh. 

But her mom was— 

_Oh._

“If you could say something to her right now, what would you say?” He blurted out. Bobby had never been the most tactful one in the group, never the best at dealing with emotions, but he was practical. 

Julie looked up at him, puzzled. “Why?” 

“I’m serious, what would you say?” 

She chewed on her lower lip a little before looking up towards the ceiling. “That I love her, and I miss her, and I’m sorry for giving up music.” 

Bobby made a mental note of those words. “She’s listening,” he whispered. “From up there. She knows.” 

* * *

> **_— 2020 —_ **

The future was… it was a lot. There were so many assignments and although most of them were music-related, the boys were slowly becoming exhausted. Even Luke and his constant enthusiasm needed a little boost. They’d been put into pairs for an assignment that focused on communication, but Alex’s partner kept disappearing and leaving him to do all the work, which is why he was bent over his composition notes in the common room, eyelids every so often drooping so much he’d end up jolting himself awake before he had a chance to slide sideways on the couch.

He felt the cushion beneath him move as someone else dropped down next to him. 

“Bro, in the nicest way possible… You look like you’re about to pass out,” Willie announced, nudging him. 

Alex looked up, and no amount of tiredness could stop him from noticing how pretty Willie looked with his hair up in a bun. His hair that currently had a streak of pale blue in it, the same blue that also had two spots on his face, once above his eyebrow and one on his cheek. Alex swallowed thickly, before realising he was staring. In an attempt to cover it up he blurted out. “Paint.” 

Willie’s eyebrow raised, taking the paint up a centimetre with it, before he wiped the back of his hand across his forehead. “Better?” When he pulled his hand away, it had smeared into a stripe and Alex couldn’t fight the grin on his face. 

“It’s in your hair, too.” 

Willie sighed, pulling out the hairband and flipping his hair up so he could try and get rid of some of the blue. Alex stopped functioning. 

“How about now?” He asked, but Alex didn’t respond. 

Shaking himself out of his internal panic, he swallowed again and shook his head, trying not to laugh instead. “Dude, you somehow made it _worse.”_

Willie shrugged, “I’ll get it off later. What are you doing?” 

“Harrison’s pair assignment,” he replied, glaring at his composition paper. 

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t you need a pair to do that?” Willie looked around. “Did your partner ditch you?” 

“Basically,” Alex admitted. 

“That sucks,” Willie scowled. “Well, shitty partner or not you need a break.” 

Alex raised an eyebrow, “I need to get this done.” 

“No, you need a break,” he repeated. “You’ll be more productive when you come back. C’mon, let me show you something.” 

“Fine,” Alex conceded. “Where are we going?” 

* * *

> **_— 2019 —_ **

Bobby knew he couldn’t stick around for long at Los Feliz. Rose had told him about a place that instantly came to mind in this situation, he only had to find it. 

_Jason’s Clockshop_ was hidden away, and most people wouldn’t think twice about it. But to a time traveller, it had the symbol on it that Bobby had seen on Rose and Tori’s notes, and it was a place that could have all the answers. He pushed open the door and stepped inside, instantly wishing he’d brought a jacket as a chill set into the air around him. 

“Oh hell no. How many times do I have to kick you out of here!” The man behind the counter stood up cursed, shaking his head. “Kid, we’ve been over this.” 

Bobby’s eyes widened as he walked over, “Do you know me?” 

“Know you? You’re a pain in my ass, that’s who you are,” he sighed. 

Bobby looked up and his eyes caught sight of something on the wall. A piece of paper was nailed there, a sketch of his own face. “Hang on, is that a wanted poster? For me? In the future? How? Why?” 

“You managed to fuck up all of time! That’s why! Get the hell out of here before anyone sees me with you,” he snapped. 

He folded his arms, looking the man up and down. “Prove it.” 

“You got given a necklace by a friend and decided to pass it on to your boyfriend, sending him to the future. Does this ring a bell?” 

Bobby sighed, “Please, I need your help. Rose said—” 

“Don’t you bring her into this!” 

“She’s the one who brought _me_ into this! She said you were a friend, that you could help! Shit, why is it so _cold_ in here?” 

He sat back down, “This place exists between time.” 

“Look, I need your help. _Please._ I was trying to get to Reggie and the others but something happened and now I’m a year behind them. You gotta help me.” 

“Fine,” he huffed. “My name’s Jason, since we haven’t been formally introduced yet. Well we have, you just haven’t experienced it yet. One condition though.” Jason pulled a large book out of the desk and set it down. “Read this. The rules of time travel. Think you could do with a refresher.” 

Bobby had never explicitly _read_ the rules of time travel, so it was a little less of a refresher and more of an entire education, but with no other option, he sat down and opened the book.” 

* * *

> **_— 2020 —_ **

“Flynn, are you even listening to me?” Carrie groaned, balling up the piece of paper she was trying to work on and throwing it at her partner. Flynn looked up from where she was sitting, headphones plugged into her laptop with one eyebrow raised in Carrie’s direction. 

Carrie sighed, reaching over and pulling one of the earphones out. 

“What?” Flynn looked at her. “I’m doing the assignment.” 

_“We’re_ supposed to be doing the assignment. As much as I don’t like you, I’m not letting you bring down my grade,” she glared at her. 

Flynn rolled her eyes. “Relax, Care. I got this.” 

She bristled, _“Don’t_ call me Care.” 

“Whatever you say…” she smirked, before adding. _“Care.”_

“God, Flynn. Could you take this seriously for more than two seconds?” Carrie complained. “I’m trying to find something that would work with both of us because I’d rather not fail.” 

“Believe it or not, I care about my grade as much as you do,” Flynn reminded her. “Come sit over here?” She patted the bed next to her and Carrie stared at her for a second. Flynn sighed, “Work with me, Carrie. Please?” 

Carrie relented and put her notebook to one side to move onto the sofa next to Flynn and take the offered earphone. At first, it sounded like _Toxic,_ by Britney Spears, but when the lyrics were supposed to kick in, Carrie realised the song had been edited with _Rolling In The Deep._ She was also forced to admit it was pretty good. She’d almost forgotten how talented Flynn was at mixing. “So you were making this while I was trying to talk to you?” 

“Uh-huh,” Flynn nodded, duplicating one of the audio tracks and moving it around on the split-screen window. “I was thinking we tend to… _clash…_ so if we did a mashup we could make it either like a conversation or an argument, with back and forth.” 

“I like it,” Carrie conceded. “Good song choice, by the way.”

“And you can choreograph?”

“Yeah, I can choreograph,” she nodded. “Get snacks and then start in an hour?” 

* * *

Unlike the others, Luke and Julie had zero problems with working together. Julie was hesitant, just getting back into music, but where she was cautious, Luke brought his enthusiasm in tenfold. The song started off acoustic, but if it went well Luke wanted to adapt it for the band in the future. (He’d talked to the boys already, and they were all for inducting Julie into the band— at her own pace— as long as it didn’t seem like they were replacing Bobby.) 

“So, Julie…” At the sound of his voice after their quiet few moments of concentration, she looked up, locking eyes with him over the top of his songbook. If Alex, Reggie, and Bobby could see them working on this assignment, they’d collectively lose their shit. Long story short, _nobody_ but Luke is allowed to touch that notebook. Yet here she was, writing notes in the margin of his song. 

“What’s up? Got an idea for the bit in the bridge we were stuck on?” 

He shook his head. “Actually, I was thinking… join the band?” 

_“What?”_

Out of anything he could have said, that was the least expected thing he could have said. 

“Do you want to join the band?” 

“Why?” Julie spluttered. “Why would— _what?”_ She tried to process his question, staring at him in disbelief. 

Luke stood up and walked over, dropping down into the seat next to her. “Dude, you’re like a human wrecking ball. You have the power to move people, to knock them off their feet! That’s what I want in my music. We had that with Bobby, but Sunset Curve is back in the 90s and if we want to do anything while we’re here we need to rebrand, do something new. We’ll need your help with that anyway, but _you…_ God, Julie, we need _you.”_

“You don’t _need_ me,” she scoffed. “I’ve heard your demo.” 

“Fine, we _want_ you then. We want you in the band.” 

“Can I think about it?” Julie asked, still in disbelief. 

Luke slid off the chair onto his knees, spinning around in front of her to take her hands in his and give her his best puppy dog eyes (he’d been told they worked miracles). _“Julie?”_

“You are _not_ begging me to join your band after knowing me for less than a week,” she raised an eyebrow at him, trying to hide her laughter. 

“Please, Jules?” 

She wasn’t sure what did it. It might have been the little pout of his lip, or the mischievous sparkle in his eyes as he asked, or the way that his hands were shaking with excitement as he held hers, or the surprise nickname… but it didn’t matter, because Julie had mostly made up her mind anyway. 

“We have to keep a low profile, no matter how much you guys want to become legends. Small gigs, private social media… We can’t risk people finding out you’re not from this timeline. My Tía will lose her shit.” 

“That’s fair.” Luke nodded, and then he processed her words and leapt up. “Wait, is that a yes?” 

“Yeah, I’ll join the band,” she sighed, smiling at him. 

His grin almost split his entire face in half as Luke picked up Julie, catching her by surprise as he swung her around. “You say ‘low profile’, I say _‘underground band wins a grammy’.”_

“Luke, I’m serious,” she warned. 

“I time-travelled twenty-five years into the future, let me have this?” 

“Please tell me that’s not going to be your argument for everything.” 

* * *

Alex looked around the museum. “Where _are_ we?” 

Willie shrugged, “I have an in with the owner.” He held up the key, dangling it at Alex’s eye-level. “He lets me have one of the rooms.” 

He followed Willie inside, ducking to avoid a piece of art suspended from the ceiling. “What are we doing here?” 

“You’re going to relax a little. Let out your stress by helping me with my newest art project,” Willie explained. 

Alex raised an eyebrow at him. “Unpaid labour?” 

“Trust me, okay? It’s stress-relieving,” he nudged him with his shoulder before grabbing Alex’s hand and dragging him down a corridor and into a room. “Pick a colour, pick a wall, go nuts.” 

Taking in the room, Alex let out a breath. There was a box of balloons on one side, apparently all filled with paint in various colours. Around them, some of the walls had already been tackled, and Alex was able to pair the blue splattered on some of them with the blue currently in Willie’s hair. “Seriously?”

“Come on, live a little,” Willie winked at him and Alex felt his heart rate speed up as he dropped his hand to pick up a balloon. “Watch me.” 

Ironic, considering that seemed to be all Alex was able to do. He was unable to tear his eyes away from Willie anyway, following him across the room as he passed the balloon back and forth between his hands. 

“Might want to ditch your jacket,” he added. “This could get messy.” 

Alex obliged, ditching it just outside the door. He hesitated, grabbing his phone and pocketing it before discarding the jacket. If they tried to get a hold of him and failed they’d probably assume the Time Collectors had him and all hell would break loose. He fired off a quick text to the group chat that Flynn had set up. 

Time Collector Antis  
  
Gone to the museum with Willie - Alex.  
Julie  
thanks for the heads up  
also, dude, you don't need to sign your name after every text  
Reggie  
YOU DON'T???  
Luke  
Julie why do you only talk in lowercase?  
Willie  
alex u coming or what?

He rolled his eyes, slipping his phone into his pocket and letting the group chat descend into chaos as he went back inside with Willie, who was trying to type while also trying not to get any paint on his phone. Willie looked up when he came back in and put his phone on the side, video on. “You ready?” He tossed him a pair of goggles.

“As I’ll ever be,” Alex laughed, putting on the goggles and picking up a balloon gingerly, glancing at the camera. 

“Trust the creative process. Plus we want to document your stay in 2020, remember?” 

Alex copied Willie, throwing the balloon. It popped, splattering paint across the wall. His eyebrows shot up and he looked to Willie to see what he thought. “Like that?” 

Willie raised his eyebrow right back. “Come on, Alex. You gotta put everything into it.” He picked up a balloon and spun around, hurling it so it could splatter against the wall and spread paint much further than Alex’s did, coating the wall in yellow splotches. “Try again?” 

Alex threw a second balloon, and this time it had the intended effect, although the two of them definitely got hit with some of the spray of pink paint. He laughed, surprised how good it felt. 

After a while, they were able to continue the conversation, multitasking with throwing the balloons. “Art’s always helped me,” Willie explained. “Well, this particular project is pretty awesome for blowing off steam, but it could be anything. One time I won a competition and got to spend a week painting a mural on the side of the school. You took up drumming to help with your anxiety, right?” 

“A mural? That’s awesome,” Alex reached up to pick a piece of dried paint out of his hair. “Yeah. I was always a little anxious, and then I travelled twenty-five years into the future, which did _not_ calm me down.” 

Willie laughed at that, before turning to Alex reassuringly. “Well, if you ever want to make this a regular thing, if the school’s too much… I don’t mind bringing you here. It’s quiet, and we can throw paint at the walls until past curfew. I know the music rooms at LF aren’t always free.” 

“Thanks, I’d like—” Alex cut himself off as paint rained down from the ceiling at Willie’s most recent balloon. The pair of them ended up coated in purple, and judging by the look on Willie’s face, he hadn’t been expecting that to happen. He looked at Alex nervously, hoping he wouldn’t be mad, but Alex’s face broke into a grin and he burst out laughing. “Dude, you’re covered in it.” 

“Hate to break it to you, but you’re not too bad yourself,” Willie replied, laughing. “Actually, you might be worse?” 

“Well that’s not fair,” Alex scowled, but paired with his smile it couldn’t be taken as anything _but_ good-natured. He picked up a balloon, passing it between his hands. It took a second for Willie to catch on. 

“Don’t you even—” Too late. The balloon hit Willie in the side and he threw his hands up to protect his face, resulting in the entire side of his shirt covered in green. “Dare,” he finished with a sigh, shaking his head in disbelief. “You’re in for it now, Mercer.” 

Alex ducked the first balloon, but the second one hit him square in the chest and he burst out laughing, his hoodie far from its original colour. He was glad he’d taken his jacket off, but as he prepared to throw another balloon, he was also glad that Willie had brought him.

* * *

Reggie and Nick were up first to perform their assignment, they’d been working on blending the sound of Reggie’s bass and Nick’s guitar seamlessly, somehow managing to play like they’d known each other for months instead of a grand total of three days. 

Julie and Luke’s acoustic version of _Bright_ went better than they expected, considering they’d spent the better part of the day trying to work out other parts of it for when they used it for the band, instead of working on the actual assignment. That wasn’t to say they didn’t spend enough time on the assignment, and Mrs Harrison was more than impressed to see Julie singing again. 

Alex’s partner brought their grade down a little, but Alex’s grade went up as soon as Harrison realised what was happening. And if Willie stopped by and hovered outside for the performance, no one had to know. 

Flynn and Carrie got into position as the backing track started, ready to perform. Carrie took the first part, the first verse of _Rolling in the Deep,_ as she walked towards Flynn like a challenge. Flynn took the second verse, and when the vocal parts split in the chorus, Carrie took Adele’s lyrics and Flynn took Britney’s. Surprisingly enough, they had more than a little chemistry. Whether it was from the whole ‘getting a little too into the competition theme’ vibes, or because they worked well together— not that either of them would admit that— it made for an impressive performance. 

Obviously, they got an A.

At the end, Luke broke the news to the others that Julie had agreed to join the band. Flynn decided that she wasn’t joining their band, they were joining _her_ band. 

Yeah, Luke was okay with that if it meant he got to share the stage with her.


End file.
